Power Rangers Prism
by RoseOfInk
Summary: No one in their right mind would let kids fight off monsters from another plane of existence. Apparently no one told the weird glowing crystal that. Now five teens and one none-too-happy mentor need to protect their hometown Opal Valley from the threat of monsters...with the power of color itself!
1. New Light Springs Anew: part 1

**Update 19-5-2020:**

**Rewrote the design of the Newans, made some small format chances and cut the length of this chapter in half.**

* * *

The cavern-like room bathed in bright, white light. Anaris slowly broke out in a big grin underneath her facemask. She bounced in place for just a few moments, before taking a deep breath.

"MASTER DIAO!"

"Lanterns, what did she blow up now…" Someone muttered from the other room.

Finally, a hand shoved the curtain separating the two rooms aside. Master Diao narrowed his four glowing eyes at his excitable scientist.

"I hope you have a good reason this time to disturb my nap…" He growled at her. But Anaris was far too excited to care.

"As a matter of fact, I do! Tadaa!"

She stepped aside, showing the pillar behind her, glowing white. "I finally managed to create my newest creation: The Newanizer!"

"So, another source to create more Newans."

Anaris looked behind her master to see Hidekai sarcastically rolling his eyes at her. Well, that's what she guessed he was doing, with his glowing, iris-less eyes and such. She returned the gesture.

"Oh, go play your harp while I do something that is actually productive."

"Anaris." Master Diao warned sharply.

She swallowed her pride away. "Right. So, as you have already found out, normal Newans cannot pierce through the barrier that separates this plane of existence from earth's."

"I am aware."

"Yes, well, uh, and because of that, we need stronger Newans to do just that. Like the three of us."

"We cannot dwindle our numbers even further than they already are." Master Diao pointed out.

"Exactly! Which is why I created the Newanizer! It will allow us to mutate normal Newans into Meta Newans, new powers and all! The humans won't know what's coming!"

Hidekai put his harp down as he stared in awe at the Newanizer. "I take everything back. This is brilliant!"

Anaris shrugged. "Well, to be fair, I still need to test it."

Master Diao turned to Hidekai. "Then bring me a Newan. We shall see how well your invention works. And if it does work…"

He grinned, looking at the globe in his throne room. "…We shall start our take-over once more."

-Opal Valley, the Roger's house-

"GILLLLROOOOYYYYY!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming…"

Gilroy took one last moment to wish his sleep goodbye and rose from the mattress. The knocking on his door continued. Grumbling, he threw on some bathrobes and opened the door.

"Please tell me you have a good reason for waking me up at 5.30 am."

Billy pouted at him. "Jordan is being mean again. He won't stop throwing Mr. Snooze around."

Gilroy sighed deeply. "How come the three of you are already awake in the first place?"

Courtney crossed her arms. "Because Molly started crying, so Jordan woke up. And then he started throwing Mr. Snooze and Bella and he won't stop."

Forcing himself to calm down, Gilroy shot a quick glance at Gary. His roommate was still asleep. He was almost tempted to wake him up, but then he remembered just how exhausted Gary had been during his exams. As much as he hated it, his brother needed the sleep more than he did.

"Alright, I'll go with you. Mom's probably still busy with Molly, right?"

Billy nodded. "And dad's already left. Courtney checked the coatrack and his coat is gone.

_Great, just what I need._

He walked past his siblings to the second bedroom, now hearing the wails of a baby from his parents' bathroom. Jordan was indeed throwing things around. His expression was somewhere between annoyed and slightly amused. Gilroy gently put a hand on his shoulder.

"Why are you throwing Mr. Snooze and Bella around?"

Jordan shrugged. "I'm just playing."

_Count to ten, Gilroy, count to ten…_

"It's not nice to play with someone's toys when they didn't say you could play with them. You should play with your own toys."

"But I wanted to play. And mom said she wouldn't tuck me in again until she was done with Molly."

"That is not an excuse to steal toys. If Molly wakes you up and mom can't put you back to sleep, you should quietly play with your own toys."

Jordan slumped his shoulders. "Okay…"

Gilroy smiled at him. "Now, go give Mr. Snooze and Bella back to Billy and Courtney."

Jordan nodded and waggled over to get the teddy bear and unicorn plushy of the ground. He held them up to his older siblings, who gratefully took them. Gilroy nodded.

"And what do you say?"

"…I'm sorry."

"And?"

"…I won't do it again."

"And what do you do next time this happens?"

"I'll play by myself. With my own toys."

"Quietly."

"I'll play quietly."

Gilroy gave a sigh of relief. "Good. Now, do you guys want to sleep or shall I make breakfast?"

Billy immediately crawled back into bed, but Courtney nodded.

"I'm not tired. Let's eat!"

Gilroy smiled and looked at Jordan. "Do you want to eat too? Or do you want to sleep?"

"Eat."

"Alright, then let's go make some breakfast. But be quiet, Billy and Gary are sleeping."

The two kids nodded and tiptoed out of the room. Only when they were out of sight, did Gilroy rub his temples. "This is gonna drive me insane one day."

Well, at the very least, Molly had stopped crying. His sleepiness still weighting on him like a sack of bricks, Gilroy trudged to the kitchen to make breakfast.

By the time he was done, he had to remind Courtney and Jordan to remember not to shout or make a lot of noise and his mother plopped clearly exhausted in her seat.

"Thank goodness John remembered to set the table…Gilroy, honey, do you mind hanging up the laundry, cleaning the toilet and bringing Courtney and Billy to school today? Thanks."

He didn't even protest. He was too tired. And it wasn't worth a fight anyways. He got up as soon as he was done eating to hang up the laundry. Better to do the easiest things first.

Gilroy decided to take a quick shower after cleaning the toilet. As the warm water sputtered on his shoulders, he could feel his muscles relaxing. For a moment, he was alone.

"Open the door! I wanna pee!"

…Well, the five minutes of peace were nice while they lasted. Gilroy quickly finished scrubbing his body and dried himself in record time. Hoping he wasn't too late, he opened the door.

By the scent of it, he was too late. Jordan looked at the ground.

"…I did an oopsie."

Gilroy put on his best fake smile. "Well, let's get that cleaned up then."

When he was finished, he wondered whether he could still take a quick five-minute nap. The clock said absolutely not.

_So much for sleep today. _

He quickly packed his bag and after some consideration, wrote a small note for Gary.

"_Hey dork, sorry to dump this on you but I have to drive Courtney and Billy. Can you clean up the table after you're finished eating? Thx."_

Putting the note on his desk, Gilroy shot one last glance at Gary before walking to the front door.

Courtney and Billy were already waiting, Billy still having breadcrumbs on his face. Gilroy stopped to wipe them off before taking them outside to his car.

Thankfully, the siblings didn't argue like usual about who wanted to sit where. Gilroy could only guess they were tired too from being woken up early. Sinking into the driver's seat, he realized just how tired he felt.

_This is gonna be a long day…_

-Opal Valley, Emerson House-

"Jaylin! Do you have everything?"

"Yes mom!" Jay shouted back, hurriedly finishing his hairdo. He quickly sprinted from the bathroom to his room to check his bag.

_Deodorant, ID, homework… Yup, everything's here._

Swinging the bag onto his back, he tried not to hurry too much as his mother walked down the stairs to give him a hug.

"Mom, first day already went by. You don't have to worry so much."

His mother waggled her finger. "Now, now, worrying is what moms do. Now, go out there and have some fun. See you later!"

Reminding himself that she was just trying to make both him and herself happy, Jay nodded and walked out the door.

He was a bit surprised to see his sister Monica sitting on the swing, enjoying the warm sun on her face.

"Um, aren't you supposed to be going too?"

"My class has an excursion to an old bell tower for history. School figured it would be easier if I just got to stay home for today. My history teacher will make a replacement assignment. Probably another essay."

Jay grinned. "Lucky you then."

Monica smiled back. "Depends on what you call 'luck'."

"I suppose so. Well, gotta go. Enjoy your day off!"

Monica waved him goodbye as he walked down the path and closed the gate behind him. He checked his watch to see he didn't have to run to make it in time for school. Almost tempted to whistle, Jay headed down the street.

"Watch out, badass coming through!"

Jay quickly jumped aside, just in time to miss the skater whooshing past him. The girl, recognizing him, stopped in her tracks and easily kicked her skateboard in her hands.

"Yo, nerd. Ready for the match today?"

"Yeah…just…don't go ahead and rushing in…like last time."

Amber rolled her eyes playfully. "Sure nerd. Anyways, I heard from a friend whose friend is the janitor's daughter that we're gonna have another group project coming up. Wanna team up?"

Jay laughed, more out of nervousness than anything else. "The teacher could pair us up with other people, you know."

Amber pouted. "I hope not. We're a pretty good team. You do the research, I present it to the class."

"That may be the exact reason why Mr. Longrun would want us to work with other people."

"Tsk, party pooper. I'll get us to work together one way or another."

Jay wisely refrained from saying anything. By then, they had entered the school grounds. Amber saw a few of her friends hanging around and quickly left him by himself. Deciding to get his books already, Jay headed for the lockers.

Just as he opened his locker, someone next to him made a noise. Jay looked aside to see a small boy, probably a freshman, waiting for him.

"Hm?"

The boy's face went pale. "Never mind."

Faster than late student, the boy had run away. Jay looked at the lockers below his and guessed the boy wanted to get to his locker, but got cold feet when he saw him using it. Well, it's not like he blamed the boy. Jay stood 6'7 inches tall and had broad shoulders to match. It wasn't the first time he ended up intimidating someone.

Trying to not feel too bad about it, Jay collected his math book and slumped through the hallway to the first class of the day.

Once again, he was one of the first to arrive. Ignoring the two potheads in the back, he sat down and took out his books. Being early was terrible. Waiting until the first period starts, with nothing to do. He could begin working on the next chapter, but he didn't want people to see him as a nerd. He was already the loner of the class.

He finally decided on playing games on his phone to spend the time. Slowly, classmates trickled in, loudly talking about boys, games, sports, girls and weed. But it wasn't until the teacher walked in that Jay put his phone away.

"Alright class, I know we have a big game against Nimbus High tonight, but please curb your enthusiasm until lunch break."

Jay heard several people behind him make sounds of pure disappointment. He honestly didn't care enough to join them. Sure, he liked playing on the team, but it was never going to become something permanent. Just a way to keep himself in shape and his parents happy.

After shushing the class, Mr. West began his lesson on geometry. As good as Mr. West was, he was unfortunately accompanied by both a boring subject and a droning voice. Jay struggled to both pay attention and focus on his notes.

Something hit his back.

Jay immediately turned around to see what and who it was. The guys that sat behind him chuckled. He looked down. One of them had thrown a ball of paper at him.

"Mr. Emerson?"

As if struck by lightning, Jay immediately turned around. Mr. West was glaring at him.

"Could you tell me what the value of X is?"

_Great. He thinks I wasn't paying attention._ That was probably what Jonas and his gang were trying to do. Get his attention so the teacher would call him out.

Jay looked at the blackboard. The parallelogram wasn't even that hard. The answer was 22. He knew it. He knew the answer. He only had to say it. Say it out loud.

_Just say it._

"Well? We don't have all day."

"…22?"

"That is correct. Now try to pay more attention or even you might fail the upcoming test."

Jay's cheeks burned as half the class chuckled. _This is gonna be a long day…"_

-Opal Valley, Nimbus High-

Cerise quietly fixed her shirt as she stood outside the classroom. She needed to make a good first impression. First impressions were vital. It would depend what kind of people would approach her and consequently, which people would end up being her friends.

She had wondered about the amount of make-up she should wear. If she wore too much, she'd look fake. Not enough and she'd look lazy. She needed to get that precise, professional in-between. No nonsense, but approachable.

_I hope I didn't go overboard with the mascara. _

"Miss Lebow?"

Cerise looked up. The teacher was standing in the doorway, smiling at her. "Could you step inside?"

She nodded. "Yes. And it's Lebeau, not Lebow."

Ignoring Mrs. Stanton's apologies, she stepped inside the classroom to look at the people she was going to be spending the year with.

It seemed fairly typical. Some girls dressed fashionably and whispering to each other, two Goths, a few boys with caps on their tables, at least one geek and a guy sleeping on his desk.

"Well, introduce yourself!"

"My name is Cerise Lebeau. I have moved here very recently, which is why I am joining your class a little later in the year. I hope we can be on good terms."

A girl in the back raised her hand. "Are you French? You have an accent."

"Yes, my family is originally from France, but I was born and raised in America."

One guy grinned at her. "That makes you a Frencian."

A bunch of people laughed. Cerise could already feel her reputation plummet. _So much for precise planning._

Trying to keep her cool, she finished her introduction. "Once again, I hope we can become on good terms with each other. Feel free to ask me any questions."

Mrs. Stanton nodded. "If you are finished with your introduction, you can take the seat next to Mr. Roger."

Instantly, the class looked at the sleeping guy. Someone behind him poked him. The guy startled awake.

"What—"

"Mr. Roger." Mrs. Stanton said sternly.

"Oh, uh, sorry miss. Guess I nodded off a little…"

Cerise walked to her seat and sat down, putting down her bag and talking out her stuff. The guy next to her scraped his throat.

"Uh, I'm Gilroy. Gilroy Roger. You're…new, right?"

"I'm Cerise Lebeau. Nice to meet you." She said, a little cooler than she intended.

The guy before her turned around. "Aww, don't be so stiff. We're a fun class."

Gilroy sighed. "Don't bother with Erwin. He's a real idiot sometimes."

Erwin huffed. "Jeez, so much for trying to light the mood at little." He turned away from them, focusing on the teacher.

Cerise shook her head a little, before paying attention to Mrs. Stanton.

The lesson went well. Mrs. Stanton talked about the sun. And if Cerise was a little honest, she was quite intrigued.

"Now, sunlight actually takes just 8 minutes to arrive on earth, which is extremely fast given the distance between earth and the sun…"

A small noise interrupted Cerise's concentration. She looked to her side to see Gilroy slumped over his desk, fast asleep again. It was kind of weird, honestly. He had already been asleep when she got here and now he was asleep again?

"Yeah, he does that a lot."

She looked up. Erwin gave a small nod in Gilroy's direction to confirm he was talking about Gilroy.

"Gil's a great guy, just tends to sleep through class."

Cerise noticed Erwin's book was a page behind, and his paper was filled with doodles instead of notes.

"You're not paying attention either."

Erwin shrugged. "I don't get what's so important about Geography. If you ask me— "

"What would I ask you, Mr. Walker?"

He quickly turned around, paling as Mrs. Stanton crossed her arms.

"Oh, well, you see…"

"If you can't be bothered to pay attention now, hopefully you will have more focus in detention."

"Dammit…"

Still frowning, Mrs. Stanton looked over to Gilroy.

"AND MISTER ROGER CAN ACCOMPANY YOU!"

"Wah! Ah, what? I, I'm awake!"

Cerise didn't even face him. "You have detention."

"Of course I have…"

The rest of the Geography class went by without a hitch. Soon, she found herself putting away her things and her new homework to head for lunch. And just as soon, people wanting to know more about her surrounded her.

"So, what is Paris like?"

"I've never been to Paris, actually." She answered as she walked down the hallway, trying to remember the way to the cafeteria.

"But, you're French, right?" A girl frowned.

"Not all French people are from Paris. France is large."

"Then where from France are you?"

"My family is from a small town in southern France called Descartes. It's named after a famous French philosopher."

"So that's why you have such nice skin! Lucky you, I wish the sun shined more here."

"I know right! France must be so nice to live in."

"You do know I wasn't born in France, right? My parents moved before I was even born." Cerise reminded them. "I just have an accent because my parents speak with one."

A boy cocked his head at her. "You don't know French, then?"

"Yes, I do, I'm just saying I've only been to France once to visit family, that's it."

She just got a few weird looks. She sighed internally. _This is going to be a long day…_

-Opal Valley, Nimbus High-

"This sucks!"

"It may be, but the longer you complain, the longer this is gonna be." The janitor snarled.

Erwin grumpily sat down on his seat.

"The match against Solar Academy is tonight. I can't miss that!"

"Then you should've paid attention in class!"

Growling, Erwin slumped over his desk. _The match of the month and I can't be there to see it? Ugh, what a dud. Why did I have to try and get friendly with that newbie? My life is over._

Outside, he could see Gilroy frantically talking on his phone.

_Well, at least Gilroy's gonna be here too. He may be a bit of a bore, but it's better than nothing._

"Now, you better go do something useful! Go do your homework or something."

_And at the very least, I can get a chance to finish my drawings._

Reluctantly, he took out his books. He opened the history book and read the first line of the chapter he was supposed to be doing.

"_The 5__th__ century officially marked the end of the Roman Empire. The empire had been ruled by a succession of weak emperors, which-"_

_Boring. Let's see which doodle I can finish today._

He opened his notebook and quickly stumbled upon a particular drawing of a truck. _Oh yeah, so gonna finish that. _

Taking out his pencil, he carefully made sure the janitor wasn't paying much attention and then started working on shading the truck.

_The light should come from the headlights…so if I shade like this…_

BANG!

Startled, Erwin cursed under his breath as his pencil suddenly struck across the paper, leaving a thick trail that ruined his painstakingly careful work. He glared at Gilroy, although he seemed too frustrated to notice.

"Dude, what the hell?" He hissed at him.

"Mom insists I have to pick up Billy and Courtney. But now that I have detention, it's gonna take a while before I'm out. They will have to wait for me. And of course, I'll get blamed by the teacher for not being on time."

Erwin blinked in confusion for a moment, before he remembered that Billy and Courtney were his little siblings. _Kind of hard to forget when he keeps complaining about them._

Gilroy placed his elbows on the table and his head in his hands. The sight of him was almost sad enough to make Erwin pity him and just sad enough to get over his ruined drawing.

They continued sitting in silence, neither sure what to do now, until suddenly, noises erupted from the hallway. Grumbling, the janitor got up.

"What now?"

He took a small peek outside before turning to the two boys. "Well, well, looks like the Solar team is here. I'm gonna go help them. You better make good use of your time."

The janitor slammed the door behind him shut. Erwin listened closely, waiting until he no longer could hear footsteps. A whole minute went by before he deemed it safe and then grinned at Gilroy.

"Dude, this is our chance!"

"…A chance for what?"

"To escape, duh!"

Gilroy eyed him. "You do realize you'll get in trouble the next day for this, right?"

Erwin shrugged. "Eh, tomorrow's Friday. I've got all the time in the world then. No match to worry about. Now, do you wanna stay here and wait or will you come with me?"

His detention-mate seemed to think about it for a few seconds, until he cut the knot with a nod. "Yeah, can't let Courtney and Billy wait."

Erwin resisted the urge to roll his eyes and instead focused on the door. Just as he expected, it was locked. He smiled. Locks were no problem for him. He kneeled down and took out a few hairpins. With the precision of a surgeon, he started picking the lock.

"Since when do you know how to pick a lock?"

He kept his eyes on the lock. "Ever since I started getting detention."

_Bingo!_

The door unlocked and Erwin quickly pocketed the hairpins. He carefully looked through a gap in the door, checking if the coast was clear. He gestured to Gilroy to follow him and then nonchalantly walked through the door, trying not to put any attention onto him.

_Works every time._

With a grin, he turned to Gilroy. "Alright, now let's go see—"

Gilroy was gone. Erwin cursed under his breath and ran down the hallway, hoping he wasn't too far away.

To his luck, Gilroy was just walking to the entrance. Erwin quickly grabbed his arm and dragged him around the corner.

"Dude, again, what the hell?" He hissed in annoyance.

"I should be asking that." Gilroy said. "Look, I appreciate you helping me, but I've got to pick up—"

"Don't you get it? There is a guard by the entrance. He knows which people have detention so he can catch them sneaking out. And I'm not really that concerned about you, but if he sees you, he'll find out I got out too. And I'd rather not hide in the girl's locker room again."

"You did WH—"

"Shush!"

Getting his thoughts together, Erwin took a deep breath and grabbed Gilroy by the shoulders to make sure he'd listen. "Look, I know a few ways out of here, but you have to trust and listen to me. We'll go to the stadium, I'll show you the way out and we never speak of this again. Deal?"

Gilroy stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, likely weighting his options. When he finally realized he wouldn't get anywhere without Erwin, he nodded.

"Deal. But don't take too long, I have to get going as fast as possible."

Erwin internally gritted his teeth and nodded back. "Sure, sure. Now follow me and make sure you're quiet."

_Oh boy, this is gonna be a long day._

-Opal Valley, Nimbus High-

Amber was absolutely, positively and bunny-on-hardcore-steroids excited! Nimbus High and Solar Academy were rivals from the day the schools were built and because of that, every match was guaranteed to be awesome. No boring 'friendly' matches or bored spectators, but cutthroat rivalry and giant shouting matches. Exactly the kind of atmosphere to that made a match extra exciting to watch.

Especially when students climbed over the railing and started fighting the players. Hardcore yo.

"Alright girls, now from the top!"

Amber focused her attention back to the squad's leader and got back in position.

"Sunny skies and bright strategy!

You will win, Solar Academy!"

Following her leader's moves, Amber continued chanting, keeping a big bright smile.

"Burning rays and lots of booze, we are sure that we won't lose!"

Immediately, the rest of the girls stopped and looked at her weirdly. Amber looked back.

"What?"

"Amber, could you please stop trying to be funny? We have a team to cheer on and a reputation to keep. Laugh in the locker room. It's time to be serious."

She resisted the temptation to roll her eyes. "Sorry, won't happen again."

"Alright…now, girls, again from the top!"

A few of the girls glared at her for one last moment, but then they all got in position to start chanting again. It was at these days that she wondered why she bothered joining the cheerleading team.

"Extension!"

Oh yeah, for the crazy stunts.

Still annoyed she wasn't allowed to stand on top, she lent her shoulder to the girl who climbed on her. Trying to keep her pose, she watched as more people started taking their seats in the stadium and more people clapped for them. The weight on her shoulder was heavy, the stadium lights were hot and having people watch her gave more pressure than she ever wanted to admit. She was really getting thirsty from this.

_Should probably get some water before the match starts. Hurry it up Rebecca!_

Her patience was rewarded. Her team captain signaled them to break the stunt and get a break. Already sweating a little, Amber made her way over to her bag. She dug around for her water bottle and put it to her lips the moment she found it.

It was empty.

_Curses! Now I have to get it refilled. Maybe if I'm quick, I can fill it before we start._

She shot a quick glance over her shoulder. No one was watching her. The perfect chance. She slipped out of the doors to the stadium and turned a corner. No one called for her or came after her. Success.

"Yes!"

Her cheer was short-lived when she realized she had no idea where the bathrooms were.

_Whelp…didn't think that through._

To her relief, two boys who looked like they were from Nimbus High strolled through the hallway at that exact moment. Thanking her luck today, Amber walked over to them.

"Hi! Can I ask you something?"

The boy in the red shirt jumped and panic went through his eyes. The guy with the dark green pants next to him chuckled.

"Chill, it's just a Solar cheerleader. What can I do for you?"

"I'm just looking for the bathrooms."

Red shirt frowned. "Don't the girl's locker room have bathrooms?"

Amber snorted. "Yeah, but the sink's too shallow to let me fill my water bottle. Plus, one of the girls is probably using it right now."

"Well, don't know if the girl's bathrooms are the same, but the boy's sinks are bigger and there is a water fountain to refill bottles." Green pants pointed over his shoulder. "Just take the next turn left and you should see it."

"Thanks a lot!" Amber shouted as she ran in said direction. To the boy's credit, he was right. She could immediately see the bathrooms and headed straight for the girl's. As if her luck couldn't be any better, there really was a refill point. Whistling her team's cheer, she filled up her bottle to the brim.

Just as she was about to head back, the stall door opened to a pretty girl with dark hair and a pink skirt. She eyed Amber as she washed her hands.

"I assume you're a cheerleader for the so-called 'big game' today?"

Amber crossed her arm and smirked. "Come on, even you Nimbus girls must admit the fights between Nimbus and Solar are epic."

"I'm new here, actually, so no, I can't admit that."

_A Nimbus not into watching our rivalry? Not on my watch!_

"Then let's change that! Come at least see the cheerleader stunts. We've put lots of work into it."

"No thanks, I'm good. I wish you and your team luck though."

"Thanks, but still, it's very fun and you can leave when you want! Nimbus vs Solar is the most epic games to watch around here!"

"I'm more interested in going home for today."

"Without even taking a glance? Not even curious? Jeez, that's cold. You could at least watch the Nimbus cheerleaders. You look like you could be one. Then we can be rivals!"

The girl turned to her, glaring. "Why are you so interested in me?"

Amber shrugged. "Because you're new to the rivalry? Because I like talking to people? Because I don't like losing out on opportunities?"

She blinked at her strangely. "Do…you always do this with people?"

"Well, I met a lot of friends through things like this, so, yeah."

For a moment, she was silent. But then she shook her head. "Go bother someone else. I'm not interested in you."

The girl walked out of the bathroom. Amber felt a little bit sad. But then she heard more voices.

"Cerise! There you are! Come on, we have to get good places for the game!"

"Wait, but I—"

The noise went softer, until they were out of her earshot.

_Well, guess I'll be seeing her after all then. Weird, she does have a point. Haven't been interested in someone since a long time. And she's even new here! I wonder…_

Then, she realized she was just standing around. _Oh crap! I have to get back to the others before the game starts! This is gonna be a long day…_

-Nimbus Stadium-

The stadium filled itself up, and as it did, more and more noise came from it. The people cheered, booed and yelled. The cheerleaders went through their routine, the movements slick and practiced. The players started entering the field, both teams greeted by encouragement and threats. The spectators screamed at their most hated and favorite players.

It was the perfect place for an attack.

Unaware what was about to happen, the players got into their position. The referees walked the field up.

"And remember! Play fair!"

The whole stadium held their breath in anticipation. The lead referee brought the whistle to his lips.

FTTTTTTTTT!

The players moved…only a few steps before they stopped.

Confused murmurs went through the crowd. Right before they noticed the ground was shaking. Before anyone could even yell about an earthquake, the ground split open…and a monster emerged.

"Haha! So my ears didn't deceive me! This place is crowding with humans!" The mole-like monster bellowed, a hungry look scanning the players and the audience. "This will be an easy job! Newans, attack!"

For a moment, everyone looked at each other, not really knowing how to react to this strange new mascot. But then, an army of monsters, colored in grey, black and white tones, with terrifying teeth rose from the hole their leader had created. Swords and metal knuckles shone in the afternoon sun. They ran up to the players and at that moment, everyone scattered.

Pleased with himself, Gold Mole looked at how the other Newans slashed at the humans, punched them and generally caused terror.

"Master Diao will be very pleased with me. If this keeps up, I'll surely be promoted to general."

One Solar field player dodged an incoming punch as he tried to find his friend. He found her kicking the sword of another monster away. Somewhere else in the stadium, a girl ran as far away from the monsters as she could, cursing her chosen footwear. Not much further from her, two boys tried their best to avoid the attention of both their teachers and those new monsters.

Things looked bad for them. Everything looked bad for the humans. Gold Mole laughed. Nothing could stop him. No one could stop him. Soon, humanity would tremble at his feet.

Victory was assured.

He laughed harder when several Newans rose their swords, ready to kill those pesky humans.

His laugh was cut short when the stadium lights flickered and then bathed him and the rest of the place in blinding white light.


	2. New Light Springs Anew: part 2

**Update 19-5-2020:**

**Sorry, not the next chapter, just cut the previous chapter in half because it felt too long for me. **

* * *

-?-

Gilroy opened his eyes. The sudden flash of light had blinded him, and only now was he able to try to see what had happened.

Except, the stadium was no longer there. Neither was the school. He could only see a white void.

"Dude, what…happened?"

He looked to his right to see Erwin standing there, looking around him in confusion. "I'm not…dreaming, am I?"

"Unless we're having the same dream, then no."

Unsure of what to do, they looked at each other. They took a few steps forwards, trying to find any ways to guide them. But no, the school really had disappeared, and they were the only ones left.

"Hey! You guys! You're here too!?"

They turned around. The cheerleader from Solar Academy they met earlier waved at them. Next to her stood one of the players, dressed in the colors of Solar Academy and looking confused at his schoolmate.

"You know them?"

"Well, kinda ran into them when I tried to find a bathroom, so no, not really."

"Am I… supposed take 'running into' literally?"

Ewin laughed and shook his head. "Nope, just asked us for directions."

"Dear god, you guys are here."

Gilroy looked over his shoulder. Cerise, the new girl, stood there with her arms crossed.

"Jeez girl, chill." Erwin muttered. The cheerleader waved enthusiastically. The player just stood there with an unsure expression.

Gilroy decided to get to business. "Does anyone see an exit?"

While Erwin continued muttering about Gilroy's siblings, the other three shook their heads.

"Maybe we should try to find a teacher." The player suggested.

The five of them looked around. The void looked endless. There were no walls, or ceilings, nothing. All they could see was white, wherever they looked. Gilroy was starting to give up hope. There were no routes, no one to help and he would surely be late to pick up his siblings, if they could escape this place in the first place.

Just as the cheerleader was about to suggest this was heaven, he spotted something shiny in the distance.

"Hey guys, I think there is something over there."

The four looked at each other, but with no other plan, followed him as he walked in the direction of the shiny thing.

Said shiny thing turned out to be a pillar, almost as white as their surroundings, adorned with a strange looking crystal on top.

"What is this?" The player muttered to himself as he looked at it with fascination.

"It's like some kind of weird power up item, or a MacGuffin." Erwin laughed. "You know, the important shiny object in games and such?"

"This isn't a game." Cerise snapped at him.

The cheerleader chuckled. "I dunno…this entire white void thing is a _little_ unnatural…"

Gilroy wasn't sure why, but this was starting to give him a weird feeling. A feeling that told him things would change. Or…maybe it already had. Regardless, whatever this thing was, it was indeed unnatural…and they shouldn't be messing with it.

"Maybe we should…step back? We don't even know what that thing does." He hesitantly said.

Erwin shook his head, grinning. "No way dude, this looks far too cool to leave alone."

The player nodded in agreement while his schoolmate stuck out her tongue. "You can't stop me! Ooh, what if something happens when we touch it?" she laughed.

"I hate to agree with him, but if this thing has some kind of nuclear radiation, it's probably too late for us anyways. Might as well see it from up close." Cerise pointed out.

Feeling defeated, Gilroy sighed. "Alright, but don't touch it! It may still be toxic to touch."

Allowing his curiosity to take over, Gilroy huddled with the others around the pillar. As he examined the crystal, he noticed it wasn't one large crystal, but rather five smaller crystals pieced together by some strange contraption. He realized each of the crystals was facing one of them, illuminated by a strange light in the middle.

"Guys—"

Before he could begin to finish his sentence, the light grew brighter – and then fired five beams through the crystals.

Gilroy froze in his place as red light from the crystal before him engulfed him. His chest felt warm, as if the light was entering him. He looked at the others and saw a beam of light struck them too, except each of those beams was a different color.

"What is happening!?" The player yelled, eyes darting around to look for an answer.

"Cool." The cheerleader grinned, almost stretching out her arms to catch more light.

Erwin laughed nervously, not entirely sure what to think of this. Cerise just stood still, just as frozen as Gilroy.

Just as sudden as the light had appeared, it faded into nothingness. Gilroy, feeling pale, grabbed the edge of the pillar to keep him from freaking out. But it wasn't done yet. Something whirred inside the pillar, the contraption glowed…and the crystals broke apart, sliding over to them.

"Are…we supposed to take these?" Cerise asked.

"You said it yourself," Erwin winked, "if this thing is dangerous, we're already dead. Might as well take it."

"Honestly, this day is getting better and better." The cheerleader already stuck her hand out to her crystal, but the player swatted it away.

"No, wait, maybe we shouldn't mess with this thing too much. For all we know, these crystals belong to someone else. We already messed with this thing so much, I don't think they'll like it if we steal it too."

Gilroy internally agreed. His mind was telling him they should just run away before anything else could happen. His heart however…

"Does…anyone else feel like we're _meant_ to take them?"

Four pair of eyes looked at him. He decided to elaborate.

"I mean, I agree that we probably shouldn't mess with something we don't know…but on the other hand, maybe this is why we're here. Like, the five of us somehow arrive in this weird space thing with no one else around, come across a pillar with coincidentally five crystals and then shoots it five beams in our chests. It's…too much of a coincidence."

There were a few slight nods, but everyone still looked too nervous to take the first step. Even the cheerleader seemed to wait until someone else took the lead.

Looks like it was up to him. Gilroy took a deep breath, carefully hovered his hand above his crystal…and then closed his hand around it.

He stood there for a moment, half expecting it to explode and half expecting some other weird light to do something. But nothing seemed to happen.

"If it works for him, it works for me." The cheerleader cheered as she immediately took her crystal. Erwin didn't waste any time taking his after that. Cerise pondered over it for a few more seconds, but then decided to go for it.

"At least it looks very nice." She admitted.

The player bounced slightly in his place, unsure what to do and only cut the knot when the cheerleader elbowed him in the ribs.

"If anything bad happens to me, you're going down." He grumbled.

And with the fifth crystal taken, the pillar slowly disappeared into white light. But the light didn't disappear, but instead became bright, until Gilroy had to cover his eyes from it.

"_This…is yours now."_

A mysterious voice rang through his head.

"_It gives you the power to fight. To protect. To lead to glory. Use it…and use it well."_

Before he could ask it what it was saying, the light and the voice both disappeared. Gilroy lowered his arms, blinked a few times and looked around.

He was standing in the middle of the stadium. It was completely empty save for the four other students standing next to him and—

"What? Where the molehill did you guys come from!?"

The mole-like monster—Gold Mole, Gilroy remembered—stared at them in disbelief. The other monsters stood around him, not quite sure what to do here.

Gilroy noticed something was in his hand. It was the crystal. Except, it looked more like a cut gem, with a golden rim and a bright red core. He could practically feel the energy flowing through his body.

"Arg, what does it matter!? Newans, destroy!"

Gilroy looked to his left. Erwin and the cheerleader he still didn't know the name of grinned at him. He looked to his right. The Solar player and Cerise nodded at him.

"No, we won't let you destroy this place anymore!"

As if it was choreographed, the five teens held up their crystals and spoke as one.

"Prism Morpher, Light Up!"

Multicolored light blinded the Newans just long enough for their transformation. Light reflected off surfaces, color danced around them, and energy filled their bodies. When they landed, they were no longer just teens.

Gilroy allowed himself to realize what just happened. The words had come out of his mouth as if he had done it every day. His movements were perfectly synchronized with the others, as if they had been doing this for years. And that transformation…

_This day is weird._

Despite the helmet feeling a little uncomfortable, he liked his new suit. Red with white and gold. He looked at the others, who were just as confused as he was.

One of the others, adorned in a blue yet similar suit, touched his helmet. "Wow…this feels a little trippy."

"Oh my god, I-I can't, this is awesome!" Green yelled, Gilroy recognizing him as Erwin by his voice.

"This is…unexpected." Cerise sought for words as she examined her pink suit. "Why does this outfit come with a skirt?"

"Who cares, let's kick their butts to Kingdom Come!" The yellow girl, who had to be the cheerleader, almost jumped up and down from the amount of energy she seemed to have.

"Rangers? But how!?"

Their attention was pulled to Gold Mole, who looked at them in fear. "They aren't supposed to exist anymore! Did Master Diao lie to me?"

"Rangers huh…I like it!" Erwin grinned under his helmet.

_So, did the crystal exist before us? Were there people like us in the past?_

There was no time for answer, as Gold Mole screamed in rage and pointed at them. "Whatever, if I go back I'm dead anyways. Newans, attack!"

Gilroy grabbed immediately a hanging weight from the belt of his suit and pointed it at the incoming monsters. It seemed like a science fiction gun, red with gold and a white tip. He tried to imagine the monsters were attractions from the carnival and he had to win a prize for his siblings.

He shot a bright red laser at the nearest monster, which immediately fell down.

The others, encouraged by his success, started firing as well, and soon red, blue, pink, green and yellow colored lasers lit up the darkening arena. Newans fell like potato sacks to the ground.

It seemed to be going well. Gilroy had to admit he was even starting to enjoy himself.

"Red dude! Duck!"

He quickly realized the warning was for him. Gilroy pretty much dove to the ground as a yellow laser hit the Newans that had tried to sneak up on him from the side. Gilroy briefly turned to the yellow Ranger.

"Thanks, uh…"

"I'm Amber! Pleasure to meet you. I could tell you a lot about myself, but I prefer showing off. Geronimo!"

Then, he saw the craziest thing he had ever seen someone do. Amber stopped shooting and instead charged at the now confused Newans. Before they could do a thing, she roundhouse kicked one of them in the face, used that same foot to kick another in the stomach and then dove right into a split to avoid two other Newans charging at her.

He was so stunned, he didn't see another Newan charging at him until it was right for his nose. With a yell, he jumped aside to dodge his fist. To his surprised, it went better than expected. With the Newan out of balance, Gilroy took his chance and kicked the Newan in the side. He half expected his foot to break on the silver armor the Newan was wearing, but the Newan easily fell down without a hitch.

"Is it me…" He asked while ducking under a Newan's fist and punching him in the large lower jaw. "Or am I stronger than I used to be?"

"It isn't just you." Cerise answered as she backflipped and then went down to kick a Newan in the knee. "I have never in my life fought like this. I've never even been good at P.E."

The blue ranger grunted as he lifted a Newan in the air and slammed him on the ground. "I mean…I'm pretty strong, but this feels unusually easier."

Erwin helped him out by jumping on a Newan that was about to strike the blue ranger from behind. "I can jump like Mario, I can punch as in Punch-Out and I can fight ala Street Fighter? I am in heaven!"

"Be serious." Cerise muttered as she shot down a couple of Newans that rushed towards the two guys. Amber did a cartwheel and kicked one more Newan in the head. "But this is awesome! Aren't you at least a little bit excited? Jay, swing me around!" She yelled as she jumped at the blue ranger, who caught her by the shoulders and started swinging her around, knocking over a couple of swarming Newans. Another name Gilroy learnt.

"I'm more concerned about surviving, thanks." Gilroy muttered under his breath as he kicked the legs from under another Newan away to make him crash unto the floor and then gave a final kick to his head.

And so it continued for a little while, as the five rangers explored their newfound power by beating the living hell out of the Newans, who were too surprised and disorganized to plan their attacks. Gold Mole growled.

"I will not let a bunch of human children make a fool out of me!"

He dove back in the hole he had created. The Newans who could still walk suddenly scattered, running away from the group.

"…Does this mean we won?" Jay asked.

Before any of them could answer or even cheer, the ground under them suddenly gave out. Gilroy tried to stumble away, but the mud was dragging him in deeper. He quickly looked over his shoulder to see his teammates struggling to get out as well.

_Crap, crap, crap! Think fast, think fast!_

He looked around for anything that could help him when he saw a stadium light near him, the head almost hanging over the hole. _Moles don't like light, right? Might explain why he hadn't joined the fight before. Wait, our lasers are pretty bright, maybe…_

"Guys! Aim your blasters at the hole! Maybe that'll chase him off!"

With little to no option, the others started taking out their blasters as well and began firing away at the hole.

"Aw, aw, aw! Stop that!" Gold Mole yelped as the lasers both hit him and lit up the hole with colorful light. The ground stopped giving away, giving the five just enough time to climb out before Gold Mole came back up again.

The five of them stood next to each other again, aiming their blasters at Gold Mole.

"Fire at once?" Cerise asked.

"Fire at once." Gilroy confirmed.

But before they could, Gold Mole started whining. "You can't do this to me! You can't humiliate me like that! Argh, I'm going to tell Master Diao about this. Maybe he'll forgive me…and destroy you! Next time, you'll be in the ground for good!"

The five teens watch as Gold Mole disappeared into the ground, unable to stop him. For a moment, they stood still and silent, adrenaline coursing through their bodies. Until it stopped, giving each other shaky smiles from under their helmets.

Erwin was the first to talk. "We…we did it!"

"That…was the weirdest thing I've ever done." Cerise muttered, her voice still a little shaky.

"Yeah, no kidding." Jay agreed.

"But it was awesome!" Amber cheered. "I got to kick monster butt!"

Gilroy smiled. "I'm just glad none of us got hurt."

They cheered, they talked, they let out all of the pent up emotions from the situation. They talked until someone's voice rang out.

"Kids? Are you still there!?"

Gilroy and Erwin shot each other a glance.

"The janitor." They said at the same time. Erin growled. "He'll catch us! Our escape plan will have been for nothing."

"I don't think this was nothing." Cerise said dryly.

Jay trembled a little. "Guys, I don't know about you, but I don't wanna be caught in this. Let's find the bathrooms and get out of these suits."

Gilroy was hesitant. "We got these outfits by transforming our old clothes into them, right? Can we even take them off? I'm not feeling a zipper on this thing yet."

Cerise crossed her arms. "And even if we do manage to get this off, most of us don't have spare clothes to put on."

"I dunno, the helmet's coming off alright…" Amber said as she lifted up her helmet, her red hair messed up as if she had just woken up. Jay immediately slammed the helmet back on her head.

"Ow, what—"

"Don't take it just off!"

"Hey, what are you doing here?"

The five of them looked up. The janitor looked at them from the top of the stadium.

"Who are you guys? And where the hell did those monsters go?"

"We are…"

"Um…well…"

"You see…"

"We're the Rangers!" Erwin suddenly yelled. The others looked at him and he shrugged back in a dude-what-was-I-supposed-to-say kind of way.

"Rangers?"

"Yeah, the Prism Rangers." Gilroy quickly said. "And we heard about the monsters, so we came here to drive them off. And, well, we did."

The janitor looked at them funny, trying to judge them. "Alright…well, they _are_ gone. Have you seen a couple of teens around? I'm supposed to bring everyone to the front so we can make sure no one got hurt."

"I think we saw a few of them." Gilroy continued. "But it was a little too quick, and we were focused on the fight."

"You have a point. If you see them again, tell them to get to the front of the school."

And with that, the janitor turned around and walked away. Jay looked at them.

"Wow, I can't believe that actually worked. Did he not suspect a thing?"

"He's probably too worked up or something." Amber guessed.

"Or maybe it's another effect from the crystals." Cerise theorized. "By the way, Prism Rangers? Really?"

Gilroy shrugged. "Sorry for panicking. It's the first thing that came up in my head."

Erwin laughed. "Well, I like the name! Let's keep it, we've already told it now. Now, let's get to my secret passage before we get caught again."

With their leftover power, they followed Erwin through the stadium to an emergency exit. Beyond the emergency exit was a chain link fence. Although the top was covered in barbed wire, there was one spot that missed the wire. Erwin easily climbed over the fence. The others followed, Gilroy feeling surprised with how much ease it went.

When they all stood at the other side, they all let out a breath of tension, relaxed…and jumped as light surrounded them once more. As by the stroke of midnight, their costumes had changed back to the outfits they were wearing before. Not even their hair was messed up from fighting in a helmet.

"Uh, okay then. Thanks crystal." Jay muttered, looking dazed from all the new information that had come their way.

"Sweet, transforming costumes!" Erwin grinned. "We can be superheroes! Let's see if we can transform again!"

Cerise glared. "Or we could not do that and go to the front of the school before anyone finds us."

Gilroy nodded. "Probably a good idea. If we stay away for too long, they may think we're dead."

"Or they'll figure out our secret identities." Erwin laughed, but his voice was shaking a little.

"Secret identities?" Jay asked him.

"I mean, duh. Heroes keep their identity a secret. Narratively it's for more tension, but in-universe it's to protect their loved ones."

"You do realize that mole monster saw us without our suits, right? All he'd have to do is follow us home." Jay pointed out.

"Well, do _you_ want to tell your family you've been fighting a big monster that could have killed us?" Erwin shot back.

That question took them aback. _Of course not._ Gilroy realized. _No one in their right mind would let a group of teens fight deadly monsters._

"If it is a one time thing, I don't mind telling my parents I managed to survive a monster attack." Cerise said.

"But Gold Mole said he'd be back. Or, well, 'Master Diao' will come for us. I don't think this is gonna be a one time thing chief." Amber said, her smile gone.

"Can, we, I dunno, give these crystals to someone else?" Gilroy asked. "The police maybe?"

"Will they believe us?" Erwin raised an eyebrow at them.

"If we transform in front of them, yeah, probably." Gilroy answered back.

"You really think so? After all that mess with the white void and all? What if we give them away, and it turns out we're the only ones who can use them? Then—"

"HEY!"

Gilroy jumped, startled by the harsh voice behind him. Erwin groaned. "Not the janitor of all people."

The janitor glared at them, and even more when he realized Gilroy and Erwin had escaped detention. He looked at the hole on the fence. "So that is how you've been escaping detention. Heh, well, after I'm done with that fence, not anymore. You're all coming with me."

The five of them, realizing they were screwed, followed the janitor as he walked them to the front of the school. A few people gasped in surprise when they saw the teens, without seemingly a scratch. Mrs. Stanton cried out in surprise as she ran to them.

"Oh my gosh, you're here! I was so worried about you. Mr. Janitor, thank you very much for finding them. Where were they hiding?"

"The back of the stadium. They had climbed up a fence through a hole in the barbed wire." The janitor grinned, glancing at them. Clearly, they in trouble.

"Oh thank goodness you five are smart." Mrs. Stanton exclaimed to the surprise of everyone around them. "Of course, that hole is definitely something we need to fix, but thank the lords you were able to find it. I wouldn't have forgiven myself if something were to happen to you."

_Wow, that is…more luck than I expected us to have._

The principal, seeing everyone was there and well, turned on a megaphone. "Alright people. I am happy to see everyone made it out here safe. Of course, because the field is now ruined, we're going to have to cancel the game for today. I see a few parents have already come to pick up their kids, so I'd advise you all to go home. Make sure you rest up for tomorrow, because school isn't cancelled."

"Bummer." Erwin sulked. "I hoped we'd get a day off."

_Wait…_

"Oh my god I completely forgot about Courtney and Billy!" Gilroy yelled. "I have to go pick them up!"

Amber quickly grabbed him by the wrist. "Hey ya'll, if we're gonna speak about the ranger-danger later, shall we meet up tomorrow after class?"

"Sounds good, let's meet at Spene park, bye!" He yelled as he ran off. _This…was such a weird day._

-Opal Valley, ?-

Elsewhere, a woman drew back the string of her bow, concentration on the target before her. Just as she was about to release it, a sharp jolt spread through her body. The string slipped out of her fingers and the arrow planted itself in the wood behind the target, far away than the intended spot.

Another woman hissed. "Yikes, that's a big miss. Want to go again?"

The woman shook her head. "No, I think my heart is acting up again. You girls go now."

She walked to the edge of the veranda, sat down and took a tablet from her bag. As soon as she turned it on, the newsapp screamed in big letters: MONSTER ATTACK AT LOCAL HIGHSCHOOL, DRIVEN AWAY BY FIVE COSTUMED HEROES!

She sighed deeply, looking at the sky. As quiet as a mouse, she muttered four words. "So it begins again…"


	3. Hero's Choices: part 1

**Me: no readers, but no worries. It's a one-in-a-dozen OC fanseries and besides, I published for myself and my bf, maybe now I can focus on my other-**

**One beautiful person: Please update**

**Me: ajskjdjkajsk *Scrambles to get out the next chapter***

* * *

-Opal Valley, Emerson House-

The sharp beeps of the alarm clock startled Jay awake. He pressed the off button on top of it. As he lifted his hand to pull it back, he saw the crystal sitting on his nightstand.

_It really wasn't a dream, huh?_

He lifted himself out of bed and took the crystal in his hand. The blue glow within was still there. He could still feel its power surging through him. Yesterday wasn't a dream. He wasn't sure whether that was a good thing.

_Being transformed…I felt so confident. Powerful. Strong._

He thought back to what the mysterious voice said to him when he was transported back into the real world.

"_This…is your power. With it, you will find the strength to protect others. Use it…and use it well."_

_Am I really up for that task though?_ The monsters he fought were vicious. He was honestly surprised he could hold his ground. _Those…Newans must have been surprised too. I'm not sure if they'll be easy to fight next time._

After all, Gold Mole had sworn to return. And so far, he and the others were the only ones who could stop them. It would be nice if they could give the crystals to someone more experienced…but a little voice in his head doubted it.

He sighed. How had he gotten himself into this mess? All he wanted was a quiet, peaceful school year. So much for that.

"Jaylin? Are you up?"

He jumped at the knock at the door and the calling of his name. "Yes mom, I'm up, don't worry!"

Worries would have to come later. He'd first have to get ready for school. Well, at least he'd have the weekend to think everything over. He took a quick shower and threw on some clothes. When he looked at himself in the mirror, he realized he had way more blue than he thought. Blue had always been his favorite color, but he had never paid attention to how much blue was in his everyday clothes until now. And there he stood, with blue jeans, a blue collared shirt and even blue socks. And it did _not_ help his mind in the slightest.

_Was I…always wearing this much blue? Did the crystal see what color I liked? Was I always destined to have it? Did my subconscious somehow know I would be a Power Ranger? This can't be a coincidence…right?_

And it kept bothering him right until he went out the door. To his surprise, Amber was waiting for him. And it didn't go past him she was wearing as much yellow as he wore blue. Yellow shorts, white shirt with yellow print, yellow sneakers…

"Wow." He muttered.

Amber burst out laughing. "Oh come on, did you really think I wouldn't wait for you after yesterday? We're basically best buddies now."

"No, not that…do you know how much yellow you're wearing?"

"I was always wearing yellow, silly."

"Exactly." He said. "And I've always worn blue. That can't be a coincidence. The crystals must have somehow predicted—"

"Or the suits just came into our favorite colors." Amber shrugged. "You probably shouldn't think too deep into this."

And yet, he couldn't help but feel there was more to it. But, without any evidence, his suspicions stayed at that: suspicions. Theorize as he might like, but without anything to prove, it was pretty much pointless. And so, he and Amber set off to school. Amber was clearly still excited about yesterday's events, as she wouldn't stop talking about them.

"So, I was thinking, if we're gonna be a crime-fighting superhero team, we'll need codenames! I was thinking…Lemonade, the superhero with a refreshing taste! Oh, and you can be Blueberry! The Healthy Fruit Hero!"

"No thanks…"

"Ooh, what about Sapphire, the Shining—"

"Isn't Sapphire a girl's name?"

"A minor detail."

And so they bickered over names as they walked to school. While Jay normally couldn't care less, the names Amber came up with were either embarrassing or just plain ridiculous. And if they were going to continue…whatever what was going on, he'd rather not be named something weird.

The moment they set put in the school, Amber spotted her friends and ran over to them, waving him goodbye as she did. Jay waved back, and went further into the school alone, like he usually did. It wasn't until he reached his locker that he ran into someone. Or, more specifically, someone went up to him.

One of the football players greeted him with a grin. "Yo, dude, where'd you go yesterday? You know, during that monster attack? You were completely gone, like you'd just disappeared."

_Crap. Does he have to talk about that?_ "Uh, just found another exit. One of the cheerleaders dragged me to it, actually."

"Ooh, you mean the crazy chick with the red hair?" The guy asked. "Did you two hit it off or…?"

Jay felt red rushing to his cheeks. "What!? No, it's not like that at all! Apparently, she just ran into some dudes who knew another way out and I just happened to bump into her."

He snorted with unbelief. "Yeah, right. Honestly, I thought you two had already hit it off. You walk together to school every day, right?"

"She's a childhood friend, we went to middle school together. Is it illegal to have female friends?"

"Really? _Just_ a friend?" He rolled his eyes. "Is she gay or something?"

"Wha-? What does that have to do with anything?" Jay protested. "Forget it, this isn't going anywhere. We're just friends, and if you want to know more about her, ask her yourself."

He turned on his heels and walked away before he could be subjected to more interrogating. It was a little disheartening, to be honest. Well not exactly friends, Jay was pretty well acquainted with the other football players. With little friends in school, Jay accepted their usual kindness and cheerfulness, like how he accepted Amber. However, if there was one thing he disliked, it was his relationships being called into question. Amber was nice, but she was just a friend. There was no way they could be more. Jay didn't even want to think about romance, he just wanted to focus on his studies. And besides, Amber was probably too spontaneous and erratic to settle down. And he doubted she liked being 'tamed'.

"Jeez, what is wrong with people?" He muttered as he walked into the classroom, sitting down to start the day. And the day started like usual. Lessons he paid attention to, annoying jerks he didn't pay attention to, and lunch that he spend with some other football players.

It wasn't until he was packing up and Amber send him a text asking where he was that he remembered the agreement he and the other 'Rangers' had made. He send back a text that he was on his way and headed out, going for the bus that would bring him near Spene park.

The ride itself was uneventful, but nervousness was nibbling on him. There was no saying what was going to happen, and yesterday was already confusing and weird as it was. Together, they could either find answers, or more questions. Jay hoped for the latter.

When he got off, he could already see Amber waving at him. Considering she was with three other people, he assumed he was the last to arrive. He steeled himself and walked into the park. There, on a bench, they were gathered. The black haired, mocha skinned girl who had donned the pink suit yesterday was sitting on the bench, wearing a pink dress with a white jacket and a hairband. Next to her sat the green 'Ranger', wearing a green T-shirt with a golden triangle that Jay recognized from a video game. Aside from that, he was wearing dark green, baggy pants and a black bracelet. The third guy stood behind them, leaning on the bench. Like the other two, he was wearing the colors of his suit, a red tank top that…had seen better days, a loose shirt in a different shade on top of it and brown pants.

Jay frowned. "Really? Even you guys are wearing the colors of your suits?"

The guy in red shrugged. "It's the only thing I had left. My mom's doing laundry today."

"I…have come to the realization that I have more clothes in pink than I originally thought." The girl flustered.

Only the green guy shook his head. "Nah, I do have a lot of green, but I choose this _precisely _because of yesterday."

Jay looked at Amber. "Still think it's a coincidence?"

"I'm not seeing the problem." She shrugged.

"Am I the only one bothered by this?" Jay grumbled. He did _not_ like the implication that they were _meant_ to get these crystals their entire life. To his surprise, the guy in red agreed. "It could give our secret away."

Pink twirled a strand of hair in her hand. "As long as we don't overdo it, I doubt it will be a problem. It does give me an excuse to go shopping though."

Jay realized he didn't even know their names and coughed awkwardly. "Um, should we…introduce ourselves…? I didn't really catch your names yesterday…"

"Right. I'm Gilroy, nice to meet you." The red guy said, crossing his arms just as awkwardly. To be honest, Jay found it soothing he wasn't the only awkward person here.

"I'm Erwin." The dude in green grinned at him. "And I am so ready for this."

"I wish I could say the same…" Jay muttered, and decided to take the opportunity to introduce himself. "I'm Jaylin, but feel free to call me Jay. That's what Amber does."

"Hi! I'm Amber! And I can't believe this is happening!" Amber squealed. Erwin beamed at her.

"Wow, you're excited for this too? I thought I was the only one!"

"I know right!"

A soft hum drew their attention to the last member of their new little club. She brushed a bit of hair from her face. She was definitely pretty. "I am Cerise. I wish we could have met in better circumstances, but we'll have to do with what we have."

Which brought them to their next point. Jay was happy he now knew their names, but he knew they hadn't met up just for that. Yesterday was _weird_ and they needed _answers._ He looked at the others, but they were silent as well. Finally, Gilroy took the lead again.

"Alright, so I assume I'm not the only one who wants to know what the hell just happened yesterday."

"Just to make sure we're on the same page." Jay took the crystal out of his pocket. "We didn't dream the white void thing, right?"

Everyone took out his or her crystal. Jay could see each of them was a different color, but they each had a golden rim.

"I think it's safe to say it wasn't a dream." Cerise said sharply.

"Alright, so, what now?" Gilroy asked. "Are we just going to wait until Gold Mole pops up again?"

"We could start practicing our new moves." Amber suggested with a mischievous sparkle in her eyes.

"And draw attention to ourselves?" Jay asked her in disbelief.

"We could look for an abandoned warehouse or something." Erwin thought out loud. "Would be a lot easier though if we had a trainer or a mentor or something."

Cerise nodded. "Or at the very least, someone who could answer our questions."

Silence fell between them, but only briefly, for the crystals suddenly started to glow in unison. Jay stretched out his hand, holding the crystal as far away as possible. Not because the light blinded him, but because he was scared the crystal was going to do something weird. And something weird it did. The light seemed to drop to the ground, mixing with each other, before it took off, leaving a glowing trail behind.

"Alright, video game logic says: always follow the glowing line!" Erwin laughed with confidence. "Let's go!"

"To adventure!" Amber cheers with him.

_They're getting along a little too well…_

Jay looks around him, hoping no one else was noticing them. Despite a few passersby looking weird at the two excitable teens, they quickly returned to their own activities, without a hint of curiosity at the glowing ground.

"Doesn't look like other people can see it." He concluded. "At least the crystals had the dignity to do that."

"As much as I hate to admit it." Cerise mumbled. "There is really no other option than to follow it, if we want anything akin to an answer."

Gilroy sighed deeply. "Then, if everyone agrees, let's follow it."

And so, with the trail of light as their guide, they started walking. It led them through the whole city. They walked past street vendors with goodies, shops of every kind and countless buildings. They walked past fountains, playgrounds and bus stations. They walked out of the city past the lake, rivers and forests.

"Ugh, are we there yet? My feet are starting to hurt." Apparently, Erwin didn't have as much patience as Jay thought he'd have.

Cerise rolled her eyes. "Stop whining. You'll only make it worse for yourself."

"Easy for you to say, this is all new for you! Of course you'd be more interested in walking." Erwin complained.

"Wasn't aware you follow glowing light on a daily basis." Cerise snarked.

"In video games, yeah! But I didn't think it would be so tiring in the real world!"

Jay had stopped listening to their argument. _All of this is new for her? Does that mean the city too? Is she a newcomer?_ He didn't have the time to wonder about it, because Amber suddenly looked around with wide eyes.

"Wait, I think I know this place!"

"You do?" Gilroy asked, a curious eyebrow lifted.

Amber nodded. "I think so, yeah! Wait, there it is!" She ran forward, forcing everyone else to run after her. They quickly arrived at the top of the hill, where a wooden building stood, surrounded by wooden gates. The building gave off an Asian feel, and Jay realized that was on purpose as he read a pamphlet on the doors.

"Mizumi Dojo: Karate, Judo, Aikido, Archery."

"I remember this place! I went there a few years back for karate lessons!" Amber proclaimed proudly. "I had to quit when I didn't have the money for lessons anymore, but I still remember this place."

"The trail stops here." Gilroy noticed. "Is this the place?"

Jay was hesitant. Wouldn't they be disturbing someone? Was this really the right place? What would they do now? "Do we…knock…?"

Amber stepped forward, a determination in her eyes. "Nope, we ring the bell."

Before anyone could stop her, she pressed the doorbell. Jay's mind was racing. What if they were tricked, and they had ended up in some crazy person's house? Or maybe it was a trick from that Gold Mole monster! To catch them off guard! What if this person didn't know a thing about what was happening, and they had wasted their time? What if—

The door opened. A rather short, but older looking woman stood in the door opening, brown eyes scanning them. She had short, dark brown hair and wore dark clothes, making her stand out from the lightwood used in both the gates and the building.

"Sorry, but there are no more classes today. I will teach tomorrow from 9 to 7. Please drop in or check my website for more information."

The woman was about to close the door, but Gilroy, looking just as panicked as Jay, quickly put a foot between the doors. "Wait! We're not here for that!"

"I mean…kinda, if we're serious about training." Amber shrugged. Cerise shut her up with a glare.

"We're here because of these." She said, taking out her crystal and holding it out for the woman to see. The woman in question frowned, but didn't say a thing.

_What if she doesn't believe us? What if she doesn't get what we're saying?_

"Look, those crystals brought us here." Jay quickly explained, and felt more confident when the woman's eyes widened. "Yesterday, we used them to fight monsters, and now, they brought us here, so, you know, we thought—"

"Get in."

_What?_ The woman had suddenly cut him off. Her face was grim, and she was looking behind them, as if she expected something to jump out from the bushes. She opened the door further, allowing them to step inside. By the tone of her voice, they _had_ to come in. And so, Jay rushed with the others inside. The woman closed the gates behind them, placed a careful hand on them, waited for a few seconds, and finally turned to face them.

"Follow me. They can't listen in if we're inside."

Exchanging confused and curious looks, the five followed the woman.

While the house may have looked grand yet elegant from the outside, the inside was even more grandiose. Authentic and modern seemed to flow harmoniously together, giving the place a timeless feeling. Jay noticed in particular several staples of Japanese culture, such as vases, painted scrolls and even a rack of samurai armor. When they entered was what clearly a living room, the woman told them to sit and wait as she brought tea.

Jay, not wanting to annoy her, did as told and sat down on one of the chair, taking in the beautiful aesthetics once more. Gilroy had decided to get more information, however.

"Hey, Amber? How well do you know her?"

"Oh, like I said, she gave me a few lessons a while back. Don't really remember her name though. She's pretty strict, but she put up with me, so she's also pretty patient."

"And you are sure we can trust her?" Cerise asked as she crossed her arms.

Erwin laughed nervously. "You want to start doubting her now?"

"I'm just trying to be rational." Cerise defended herself.

"That's a good quality to have."

They all turned to see the woman entering the room, holding a plate with teacups. She set it down on the table, and everyone took a cup. Jay, not wanting to seem rude, took a sip, almost burning his tongue. Trying to divert attention from his now sore tongue, he started to ask her an innocent question.

"I-I like your house. Are those Japanese decorations real?"

She gave him a curt nod. "Yes, they are. My grandfather is Japanese, and is the one who opened this dojo. Almost everything Japanese in this room is authentic."

Jay was impressed, and he wasn't the only one. Cerise was looking at her surroundings with more appreciation, Gilroy's eyes were wide, and Erwin muttered a soft 'wow'. The woman sat down, looking all of them intensely. It was almost scary.

"Am I right to assume you are the 'costumed heroes' who fought off the Newans yesterday?"

"Yeah, that was—" Erwin started, only to realize something midsentence, "Wait, Newans?"

"You know what those things are?" Cerise asked her.

The woman nodded. "Forgive me, I haven't introduced myself. I am Delia Grey. My grandfather fought those monsters in the past. They originate from Japan, but during the war between Newans and Humans, the Newans decided to move to Opal Valley. My grandfather and his team moved as well to seal them away, but he is the only one who stayed. He passed all of his knowledge onto me, in case the Newans ever returned. I also inherited his dojo, which is enchanted to keep out Newans. I didn't think the Newans would return…"

She looked at them once more and sighed. "…But clearly, I was wrong. Those crystals, do they allow you to transform into a Ranger?"

Gilroy nodded. "If you mean transforming into these suits, yes."

"Where did you get them?" She asked them sharply.

Jay wasn't really sure how to answer. He was still figuring that part out himself. But, he couldn't ignore the way she was glaring at them, and tried his best. "Well, I don't think we fully know ourselves…but there was this bright flash of light that transported us to this weird void. There was a pillar with the crystals on it, we gathered around it, light shone into our chests…"

Amber grinned. "And then the pillar let us take the crystals."

How Erwin could be even more excited than Amber, Jay had no idea. But the guy immediately started rambling.

"And then we were transported right back on earth, but we were all standing in the stadium, despite the fact I was _clearly_ heading to my now formerly hidden exit, so it spawned us right into the battlefield! Oh boy, and then we all nodded at each other and we raised our crystals and all said this cool transformation phrase and then this awesome transformation sequence happened where I just kinda floated in the air and light rained down and hit me in various places where I got suit pieces and I'm pretty sure I was encased in crystal at one point but I'm not sure. What I am sure of is that I need a catchphrase or something to say at the end. And then we started blasting those monsters with this cool ray gun with infinite ammo and I did cool tricks and it was AWESOME!"

"So basically, yes." Cerise summarized.

Delia seemed to be sunken in thought, holding her chin in her hand and furrowing her brows. She mutters words too soft to hear, until she shakes her head.

"Doesn't matter. What matters is that the five of you are Rangers now. And that means you five are responsible for protecting this city, and earth."

Before Jay could ask _why the hell they are protecting the entire earth,_ Delia stood up.

"Which means, that as the only one who knows about the Newans, that I need to be your mentor. Come with me."

_Our mentor? Well, we _are _in need of someone to guide us…_

They followed her through a hallway, until they arrived at the dojo itself. Delia turned to them, eyes cold and demanding of respect. "As your mentor, I will be training you to become Rangers strong enough to defeat the Newans. In this room, you will call me Sensei, and follow my guidance. Take off your shoes."

"I…wasn't expecting we'd jump straight into training." Erwin laughed nervously. "Didn't bring any clothes."

"You will get a karategi from me next session. For now, all I want is to see your current abilities."

They took off their shoes and socks, and stood before her in a line. Each of them was nervous, some hiding it better than others. But they all waited until Delia spoke again.

"One of you, attack me."

Gilroy blinked in surprise. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You heard me. Attack me."

Jay couldn't believe his ears. Was she really asking them to attack her? _She's leagues above us, that's for sure, but actually attacking?_

He couldn't help but question it. "Shouldn't we…at least do a warming up or something?"

Delia looked at him. "To determine how I should train you, I first need to see what you are capable of. I'm assuming you were each given skills in martial arts the first time you transformed, am I correct?"

"Yeah, but—"

"As of right now, none of us know the limits of your capabilities. If I know your limit, I know how to raise them. So again, attack me."

They looked at each other, none of them taking the first step. Until finally, Gilroy stepped forward, nodding to her. "Alright. I'll try my best."

Delia bowed, and Gilroy awkwardly bowed as well. He took a fighting stance, and Delia shifted slightly as well. "Begin."

Gilroy balled his fists, and took a swing at her. Delia easily dodged to the right, swiping at him with one arm, barely hitting him. Gilroy grabbed her arm and threw her over his shoulder. She landed on her feet, jumping to the side to avoid Gilroy's high kick. She went down and swiped her legs at him, which he dodged by make a summersault. She ran at him, and he blocked a fist with an arm. He responded by trying to punch her, but she blocked it the same way he did. He threw more punches at her, which she slapped aside, until she caught his fist.

"Yame."

"What?"

"It means 'stop'. You've proven yourself."

Gilroy relaxed his stance, and Delia freed his fist. "You are more skilled than most beginners, and I am correct in assuming you've never had any martial arts training before?"

Gilroy shook his head. "Nope, not even basic defense. I missed that class due to sickness. I'm…pretty surprised. I thought I'd be on the floor after throwing the first punch."

"I could have." Delia responded. "But there was no reason to. This sparring match wasn't to see if you could defeat me, or to correct any mistake, but merely a test to see your skills. As I suspected, the crystals gave you a good start, but you have a long way to go."

She glanced at the others. "And that means all of you must start training, if you want to be able to protect Opal Valley. The Newans are always fighting to overcome the Rangers, and if you don't improve, you will be overrun."

Jay, upon hearing this, immediately took out a small agenda out of his bag. "Oh, well, I have my schedule right here, I think I have room—"

"Tomorrow at 8. I just happen to have 9 o'clock free, so we'll be able to fit in two lessons." Delia interrupted him. "After that, I can properly try to rearrange my classes to give you first priority."

"What?" Erwin complained. "But tomorrow's Saturday!"

"Exactly. There is no school, so you can start the earliest time possible."

"I don't think that's the problem." Cerise said. "You're telling us to throw all of our plans and lives out of the window."

Delia didn't even give her the dignity of looking at her, as she took out a small brown book to note everything down. "A small price for the safety of earth. You all do want become proper Rangers, right?"

"Uh, no?" Gilroy said, looking very uncomfortable. "I never asked for this. I'm busy enough with my family as it is, I was hoping you could somehow give my crystal to someone else."

"Same here." Jay spoke up. When Delia looked at him, he felt the need to explain. "Listen, I really appreciate you trying to help us, but this wasn't the solution I was looking for. I'm not fighter material, I'm not hero material. I know plenty people like me who would love to do this, isn't there a way to transfer this power to them? I-I just want to live a normal life."

Delia's eyes were piercing into him with an intensity that made him shut up. She stepped closer to him. Even though he was looking down at her, he felt a fear he wasn't used to feeling outside of the football stadium.

"What exactly do you define as 'a normal life'?"

"Wha—"

He didn't have time to process her words, let alone respond to them. An alarm sounded through the dojo, and Delia averted her eyes.

"Dammit, should have guessed there wasn't much time."

"Uh, I don't remember the alarm." Amber said, looking around as if she was expecting something to jump at her.

"A Meta Newan has breached the barrier. They're attacking the city."

"I'm sorry, a what Newan?" Cerise asked bewildered.

Delia looked like she didn't have much time to explain, and considering the alarm, there most likely wasn't. "A type of Newan that is stronger than the soldiers they bring with them. They have unique powers and are capable of breaching the barrier that separates our world from theirs."

"What's that's supposed to mean?" Jay yelled. "You're giving me more questions than answers."

"There is no time. Listen to me, you must know a few things before you go. The Meta Newan is capable of doing the most damage, but don't focus solely on him. The soldier Newans can harm people just as easily and they will most likely try to swarm you before you can get close to their boss. Meta Newans have explosive blood that will blow them up if you do enough damage, but try to not get too close when that happens."

"Alright, what else?" Erwin shouted, unable to keep his enthusiasm and voice down.

"Keep the civilians out of harm. Together you are stronger. I have quads that can get you there easily."

"One of those things is not like the others." Amber quipped.

"Not the time for jokes." Cerise shot back.

Delia led them out of the dojo and through a hallway. She stopped before a utility closet, opened the door, and gestured them to get in. Confused by ready to accept anything at this point, Jay and the others did as she wanted. She closed the door behind them and opened a hidden panel. After typing in a password on a keypad, the closet suddenly started to rumble.

"Wait, is this a secret elevator-closet?" Erwin asked in awe.

"This dojo has had…a few upgrades over the years." Delia said. "Besides, it's the easiest way to keep curiosity from revealing too many secrets."

A door opened, and Jay looked in awe at the metal room, that still seemed to ooze a Japanese aesthetic through computer screens that looked like wall scrolls, a briefing table that looked like a typical Japanese table he remembered seeing in a Japanese cartoon, and Japanese weapons were on display.

"Welcome to the Hideout." Delia explained as she walked to the center of the room. "The Hideout functions as both a briefing room and a place to develop new Ranger technology. Until I've figured out a way to track Newan locations on cellphones or something similar, this will be where we discover the latest Newan invasions."

She darted with her fingers over the table, and a hologram appeared above it. It displayed a map of the city, with one red dot.

"That's Spene park." Gilroy noticed. "We just got here from there."

"Wouldn't the people call the police when they see the Newans?" Jay asked.

"Unless the police here are exceptional, I doubt they will be able to do much." Cerise said. "I have a feeling tasers don't work on the Newans."

"Correct, and their thick skin makes it impossible for normal human weapons to hurt them." Delia continued. "The only reason why Ranger weapons work is because they are specifically designed to combat the Newans."

"Okay, I already guessed the police was gonna be useless." Erwin noted. "So, when do we go?"

"We might be able to get the police to protect civilians." Gilroy pointed out. "That way, we only have to focus on defeating the Newans."

Amber groaned impatiently. "Come on already! I want to fight the Newans! You said something about quads, right?"

Delia gave a sharp nod and walked to the end of the room. She flipped a large switch, and the wall opened to reveal several bulky quads in various colors. "These quads belonged to my grandfather's team. They have not been used in a while, but I've maintained them over the years. They're easy to use and fast, so you'll quickly get wherever you need to go."

Erwin gave a low whistle, and Amber immediately hopped onto a yellow quad. Jay walked up to a blue one and traced a finger over it. _Am I…really going to ride one? It shouldn't be too different from riding a car…is it?_

"Hey," Cerise's voice rang out, "this is very convenient, but we will stick out like a sore thumb with these. Even for a quad, these ones stand out. Everyone will have their eyes on us, which will make it hard for us to keep our identities secret."

"The solution is easy." Delia shrugged. "Just transform here. You'll immediately get the helmets on as well."

They looked at each other. If Jay was completely honest, he wasn't really sure about this. The first time he transformed, it wasn't really by choice. It just happened. But if he transformed now, he would be doing so out of free will. He wouldn't have any excuses. No weird crystal speaking the words for him, no endless void urging him to step forward, no self-defense from monsters attacking him. He would have to go out there, and fight the monsters threatening the city.

If he transformed, he would be officially a hero, and his life would change forever.

"Come guys, we need to do this in sync!" Erwin whined.

Amber rolled her eyes. "Leave them be then. I'm not going to be stopped by wussies!"

"And I refuse to take pressure from either of you!" Cerise hissed at them. "I am not going into this until I know everything."

"Yeah." Jay found himself agreeing. "I…really don't wanna rush into this."

But Delia set them all straight again. "The longer you stand by and discuss this, the more danger innocent people are going to be in. Make your choice, but make it fast. Are you going to run, or will be a hero?"

The question struck Jay like a lightning bolt. Yes, this wasn't a game, and he could get seriously hurt from fighting the Newans…but so could every single citizen in Opal Valley. Sure, the police could try to protect them, but if Delia was right, no amount of military forces would stop the Newans from hurting defenseless people. But Jay wasn't a hero. He was a simple kid who played football, studied hard for every test and had only a few friends. Could he really be the person that Delia wanted him to be?

It was then, that Gilroy walked up to Delia, and then turned to face the rest of the uncertain teenagers that were thrown into a life full of monsters, costumes and weapons. And as he stood there, looking scared yet determined, Jay remembered how Gilroy was the first to take the crystals, taking the lead when no one else did. And now, he took the stage again, speaking to them with his mind made up.

"Do we really have a choice, when it comes to innocent lives? We stand a chance against the Newans, they don't. If we don't do something, who will? Who will fall when we don't save them? Neighbors, classmates, that old friendly lady crossing the streets, hell, even our families could be out there, running for their lives when we have the ability to protect them!"

Gilroy stood tall, taking out his crystal. "You're free to make any choice. But I've made mine. Even though I'm terrified and don't want this, I'm going out there and save them!"

Just as Gilroy finished speaking, Erwin stepped forward and took out his own crystal. "I'm with you dude. Let's be heroes!"

Amber, to no one's surprise, took out her own crystal as well. "Honestly, I've already decided. I just wanted to know how many other people are going as well."

After a moment of hesitation, Cerise nodded as well. "My parents could be out there. I won't let those monsters get their hands on them."

And now, only Jay remained. They stared at him, which made it only more difficult for Jay to think. But, a little voice in his head, that came from his heart, had already seen there was only one choice. The right one.

"I hope to god we make it out alive." Jay said as he folded his hand around the crystal in his pocket. "And I hope to god I won't regret this."

Gilroy smiled at him, and it was such an earnest smile, that Jay couldn't help but awkwardly smile back. Five them nodded at each other, turned to face Delia, and spoke the sacred words.

"PRISM MORPHER, LIGHT UP!"

And Jay allowed the light to transform him, surrendering to the warm, yet odd light that encased him, turned his clothes into spandex and crystalized the helmet on his head. And when the light faded, Jay looked at his suit, that felt like a second skin, but one that did not belong to him.

Beside him, Erwin struck a weird pose. "Hah, Prism Ranger: Green!"

"What the hell are you doing?" Cerise asked, already annoyed.

"Hey, if we're really gonna be heroes like this, we need to go all out!" Erwin defended himself. "Catchphrases and all!"

"Don't expect me to join in."

Amber ignored the bickering and immediately climbed on the yellow quad. "Ooh, this is gonna be so much fun! I'm so glad you decided to join, Jay!"

"Yeah, yeah, let's get this over with." Jay grumbled. He made his way over to the blue quad, accepting that blue was just going to be his color from now on, and heaved himself onto it. He had never ridden anything like a quad before, yet as he curled his hands around the handles, he felt like he had never done anything else. Jay had started hating this feeling a long time ago.

As the others climbed on their quads and got ready to hit out, Delia crossed her arms and smiled.

"You are more capable than you think."

And with her final advise, she pressed a button, and open the door to the forest. Jay revved up the engine, took and deep breath…and hoped for the best.


End file.
